Jason Romrell

Team Work ROCKS!

Is team work part of your culture?  Can you even have team work if you're a solo practitioner or an independent agent?  I say YES.  Team work to me is a not just about your business team...it's about alliances, cooperatives, networking groups, mentors and others who enrich my life and enhance my business.  I'm fortunate to be able to call upon friends and peers to coach me when I need the help (not being afraid to ask is sort of important there).

I also admire the teams that we create which make our communities better.  For example, our Chamber of Commerce boards or committees on which we serve.  What about helping our schools through volunteer service?  Perhaps even our monthly group of gamers is part of our team.  Regardless how you define it, being a team player and working for the benefit of others will yield dividends that we probably never expected in the first place.  Here's my business coaching firm's culture statement on team work.  If it works for you, feel free to borrow it and make it your own.

I am a team player and team leader. I do whatever it takes to stay together and achieve team goals. I focus on co-operation and always come to a resolution, not a compromise. I am flexible in my work and able to change if what I'm doing is not working. I ask for help when I need it and I am compassionate to others who ask me.

Some of our other Points of Culture (the ones I've covered so far):

Committment; Ownership; Integrity; Excellence; Success; Education

My friend Nate Wheeler and I participated in our Toastmasters recent Area competition. What a great experience. Nate's category was "tall tales". He told a riveting story about a guy with an accent (what was that accent Nate?) who was attacked by a bunch of ducks while out showing off his falcon. Nate came fully equipped with duck sounds, flight patters, plenty of drama and kep the audience laughing from start to finish.

My contest topic was "humor". I have a very hard time making things funny. Giving presentations is fun (and funny) because of the circumstances or people in the room. Preparing something funny ahead of time is a whole different story for me. So I spoke about something I know very well: Attorneys. And something I (thankfully) don't know too well: Prostitutes. Fortunately for me, there are a number of similarities between being part of the noble legal profession and being part of the world's oldest profession. These similarities make for a humorous speech.

And...at the end of the night...Nate and I both walked away with our 1st place trophies! Thanks to our fellow GFUT members for showing up to cheer us on and laugh like crazy! It was a great experience.

Want to learn more...or have some of this fun for yourself? Check us out here: http://georgefoxu.freetoasthost.biz/

Thank you to Jon Swarthout, the founder and Artistic Director of the Treasure Valley Institute for Children's Arts. Jon has done some amazing things for children in the Treasure Valley, including my two daughters. My girls LOVE associating with Jon and his staff of educators.

TrICA recently acquired a 20,000+ square foot space which will be the future home of some fantastic programs. The project will be funded by private donations. If you're in the Treasure Valley and would like to contribute to an incredible educational opportunity for all children, please visit this website for more information: http://www.tricarts.org/Get_involved.html. Even though TrICA is an "arts" organization, I can assure you (from my own daughters' experience) that the wealth of knowledge, social interaction, hands-on experience and love that comes flowing out of TrICA will make for better people, regardless of whether the children attending have artistic aspirations.

Jon...you're doing an incredible job with TrICA. Keep it up!

I had the pleasure of listening to Joan Endicott this morning. She was the guest speaker at Gregg Saunder's morning meeting (Gregg, by the way, is an outstanding financial planner with Rocky Mountain Financial in Boise, Idaho...).

Joan gave a fantastic presentation full of emotion (yeah...like I wanna cry at 7am), humor, motivation and inspiration. Joan is a fellow business coach, success adviser and public speaker. I thought her mix of stories, humor and practical advice were right on. Her website has plenty of background info if you want to look into what Joan has to offer (see http://joanendicott.com/). Joan is someone you'll be glad to know (or at least glad to know about).

My reference to Joan is not to take away from my own client base or my own abilities. Rather, it's a professional nod to someone who does well at her job (I LOVE to see success in action). As a coach myself, I believe and practice (along with my 1,200+ other ActionCOACH peers) the concept we call "coompetition"...that is, the blend of cooperation and competition. I believe that we're better people when we share our expertise and experience and build solid alliances rather than wishing our competition would get swept away in a tornado.

And if you don't buy into the coompetition concept, the least you could do is say thank you to your best competition...because they can only push you to do even better...or settle for mediocre (and who wants that)! For me, I'd rather work with excellent business coaches than work against them. By working together...even if just toward a common goal of better individuals and better businesses...I benefit, my coompetitors benefit, and my clients benefit. Wins all the way around!

Joan...how's that for PERSPECTIVE? (See, I really was listening).